Ottawa Fury FC News Release - www.ottawafuryfc.com
Saturday, May 31, 2014
OTTAWA, Ont. - Ottawa Fury FC took home a nervy three points against visiting K-W United on a sunny Saturday afternoon at Keith Harris Stadium. The Fury controlled the match all afternoon, outshooting the visitors 19-4, but only led by a single goal until very late and gave up two quality second-half chances.
Arin Gilliland's impressive individual effort put Fury FC up 1-0 after 23 minutes, and Lydia Hastings' easy 85th-minute tap-in sealed the deal for Dom Oliveri's side, which improved to 2-0-0 in the young W-League campaign.
Oliveri ran the Fury out in an aggressive 4-2-3-1, while Stuart Neely deployed the visitors in a midfield-clogging 3-5-2. Ottawa enjoyed the first real opportunity of the match in the 12th minute when Lisa-Marie Woods saw her initial free kick blocked by the K-W United wall before her left-footed second effort floated just over the crossbar.
The Fury continued to press and broke through courtesy of Gilliland. The University of Kentucky standout picked up the ball in the midfield and charged through the heart of the K-W United defense before slotting the ball past 'keeper Alison Gondosch and into the far corner of the visitors' net, bringing the crowd to its feet.
The visitors pushed back aggressively, with a set of half-chances immediately after Gilliland's goal.
Eventually, K-W United created its first legitimate scoring chance on a 30th-minute Fury FC defensive breakdown, testing Ottawa 'keeper Jill McVicker from long range. McVicker was up to the task, diving to deny K-W United striker Emily Brown's effort.
The Fury Women re-took control of the match toward the end of the first half, with both Kristy Moore and Woods peppering Gondosch but failing to beat the K-W United 'keeper.
The Fury started the second half with a clear change in mentality as they began to stretch the K-W United defenders and challenge Gondosch more. Ottawa nearly doubled its lead in the 59th minute when Woods unleashed a crisp left-footed effort which was well-parried by Gondosch.
Just after the hour mark, Gilliland essentially took over the match. In the 65th minute she sprinted through the heart of the midfield in a way that was eerily reminiscent of her first-half goal before cranking a left-footed screamer which rattled the woodwork and stayed out. A few minutes later she cleanly won an aerial battle inside the K-W United penalty area to send a flicked header inches wide.
"Arin could've had three or four goals on her own tonight," Oliveri said.
Gilliland was at it again in the 75th minute when her long shot was parried by Gondosch, who then denied Fury FC substitute Lauren Hughes on the rebound - miraculously keeping it 1-0 for the Fury.
It was only fitting that the 85th minute put-away goal for Fury FC was started by Gilliland. The US U-23 international slotted a ball perfectly down the right flank for Moore, who latched onto it before firing a shot on net. Gondosch made the stop, but the rebound landed square for Hastings, who easily deposited the loose ball and clinched the three points for the Fury.
There were some nervous moments late in the match for Oliveri's side, which conceded an injury time penalty. Cassie Wheldon stepped up for K-W United, but her penalty shot was superbly denied by a diving McVicker to preserve the shutout.
"We came out slow, again," Oliveri said. "It was really frustrating; we weren't very dynamic up front and we spent the duration of the first half chasing things we shouldn't have. It's a good win, and Arin was one of the few players that showed up to play for us today - without her, we might not have gotten the three points at all."
"It's always difficult to get a result against a classy organization like Ottawa," Neely said. "They have some excellent players and there was a bit of a gap, which was clear in the second half. Our keeper, Alison Gondosch, has a lot to be proud of, the way she responded with her second-half performance. We'll focus on some things and look to get a result next week against the Fury at home."
The Fury Women will be back in action next Saturday as they'll travel south to face the K-W United.